Chapter 7 Notes Flashcards
Dhows
Small swift trading ships- contributed to spread of Islamic civ
Al-Mahdi
775-785: 3rd Abbasid caliph- tried to reconcile w/ shi’a- fail
> Harun Al-Rasid (786-809)- thousand and one nights
Decline
Political divisions/ succession prob> civil wars
Dependent on Barmishides (Persian advisors)> power struggles w/caliph
Al-ma’mun
(813-833)- body guard of 4000 slaves + 70000+ mercenary force
Won civil war> need to build personal armies to secure throne
Mil. Power/ slave mercenaries
Imperial break down
Temporary slave-army control, civil balance
Tried to est. new capital> expensive construction + more troops= high taxs
Peasants die, flee, join gangs/vagabonds- shi’a encourage
Irrigation in Tigris-Euphrates-disrepair
Decline of women’s position
Herem(created by Abbasid court) + veil, seclusion,
Low class- farm, wove clothes/rugs, raise silkworms
High- all home work, unseen pawn of husband, work for sons succession
slaves (general/female)
concubines(slaves)- free by healthy sons, slaves captured/purchased from non Muslim regions-prized for beauty/intelligence> greater attraction over wives, more personal liberty
Nomadic incursions/eclipse of caliphal power
Provinces>kingdoms try to take over
- 945- Buyids of Persia- take Baghdad> Sultan-“victorious” (Arabic) shi’a rise
- 1055: Seljuk Turks- Sunnis: purge shi’a officials- kept byzan./ Egypt out
Crusades
Goal: capture the holy land
Starts 1096-early most successful (division and surprise) June 1099- Jerusalem taken- Muslim/ Jew killed
Crusade impact
Little threat to Muslims
Greater impact on t than Muslims
Euro borrowing; damascene swords, fortifications, science/med(better Muslim docs), recover Greek learning, Indian #s, rug/textiles, dates, coffee, yogurt, chess, chivalry
Saladin
Retakes lands in 1291 @ Acrel
-united princes
Age of learning/ artistic refinements
Urban growth, decline but intellectual thrive, life became dangerous but rapid growth and prosperity
Flowering of Persian literature
Persians= central role in imperial politics , lang.= high culture, primary written land in Abbasid court (Arabic: lang still for religion, law, + natural sci)
-Shah-Nama: epic by firdawsi- Persian history, battles, love affairs, intrigues
Other topics: state craft, common life, communicate w/ divine, blend of mystical and common place
Educational achievements
Math: build/ add onto theories of Greeks
Chemistry: experiment, Al-Razi- classify all material substances
-Al-Birni- sophistication, weight of 18 minerals
Practical Application
Best hospitals: reg. study + pass formal exam
Optic + bladder ailments
Paper-making,silk-weaving, ceramic firing
Best maps
Theme for Muslim world
Social strife/ political divisions vs. trading links/ intellectual creativity